Lemmings is a puzzle-platformer video game originally developed by DMA Design and published by Psygnosis for the Amiga in 1991. The basic objective of the game is to guide a group of humanoid lemmings through a number of obstacles to a designated exit. In order to save the required number of lemmings to win, one must determine how to assign a limited number of eight different skills to specific lemmings that allow the selected lemming to alter the landscape, to affect the behavior of other lemmings, or to clear obstacles in order to create a safe passage for the rest of the lemmings.
Lemmings was one of the best received video games of the early 1990s era. The popularity of the game led to development of its numerous ports to other systems and the creation of several sequels, remakes and spin-offs, as well as inspiring similar games.
Lemmings is divided into a number of levels, grouped into four difficulty categories. Each level includes some or all of the following elements: entrance and exit points (at least one of each per level), destructible landscape elements such as rocks or soil, indestructible elements such as steel plates, and obstacles including chasms, high walls, large drops, pools of water/acid/lava, and booby traps.
The goal is to guide at least a certain percentage of the green-haired, blue-robed lemmings from the entrance to the exit by clearing or creating a safe passage through the landscape for the lemmings to use. Unless assigned a special task, each lemming will walk in one direction ignoring any other lemming in its way (except 'Blockers'), falling off any edges and turning around if they hit an obstacle they cannot pass. A lemming can die in a number of ways: falling from a great height, falling into water or lava, disappearing off the top, bottom or side of the level map, being caught in a trap or fire, or being assigned the Bomber skill. Every level has a time limit; if the clock counts down to zero, the level automatically ends.
To successfully complete the level, the player must assign specific skills to certain lemmings. Which skills and how many uses of each are available to the player varies from level to level, and the player must assign the skills carefully in order to successfully guide the lemmings. There are eight skills that can be assigned: